Cause I'm Only Human
by toothlessturtle21
Summary: An engineer visits the Bounty to strike a deal with Wu, but the crew discovers he thinks less than kindly of sentient androids. Rated T for android violence and pure Zangst. Hurt/Comfort with minimal comfort.


"We will have a visitor at the Bounty tomorrow."

Sensei had dropped the bomb one early Tuesday morning, when half the crew was still blinking sleep out of their eyes.

"Heh, we never get those," Jay reached for the plate of eggs, courtesy of Zane, in the center of the table. "What for?"

"He is a lead engineer in the new construction of Quark Laboratories, and he wishes to discuss potential security issues with us," Wu sipped his tea, and Jay and Nya perked up.

"Quark's getting a lab now? What're they testing?" The Samurai asked, curiosity piqued.

"Can't believe they're deviating from building parts," Her boyfriend tacked on through the mouthful of breakfast.

"Might we know the information of his name, Sensei?" Zane inquired, sipping his drink thoughtfully as he tried to think of who it could be.

"His name is Dr. Steven Crow."

"Interesting, I shall have to look into his achievements," The Ice Ninja nodded, and that was the end of that conversation, the other three residents left slightly confused.

Later that night, Nya heard a knock at her door.

"Can I come in?" She heard Jay from outside, and she opened the door to allow him entry.

"So, uh, I found out something not too great," He scratched the back of his neck, clearly uncomfortable with the topic. "This Dr. Crow guy? Yeah, his opinions on androids aren't too great. He refuses to believe AI can be sentient, can't be equal to humans, you get the gist."

"Alright, so why does that matter?" She asked slightly unamused, but her eyes widened as she realized. "Oh, Zane. Damn it."

"Yeah, if he knows Zane's an android, then tomorrow..." He gulped, drawing his finger in a line across his neck. Nya got the message.

"Does he know?"

"Don't think so. I talked to him a bit ago and he said he hadn't had the time to look into this dude, and that he would just wait to be surprised. I didn't want to tell him."

"Well, I guess we'll see tomorrow."

* * *

The next morning, the inventing duo were so anxious Sensei had given them special tea for it. Wu seemed very determined to be on good terms with Dr. Crow, so that meant the rest of the crew was to follow suit. Zane seemed so eager to meet him too, happy to be able to talk with someone equally as interested in robotics and machinery. When the knock at the door sounded, the whole crew held their breath as Wu led in a man with graying hair tied back into a knot at the base of his neck, glasses perched on the end of his nose.

Silvery eyes scanned the group, and he walked forward to shake Lloyd's hand.

"Good morning, mister Garmadon," He firmly shook once before moving on, introducing himself to all the ninja, before finally his eyes settled on the Ice Ninja, who stuck out his hand in anticipation. Dr. Crow looked at him with a peculiar expression in his eyes, and turned back to Wu without even giving Zane a second glance.

"Why is it here?" He asked nonchalantly, not seeing anything wrong with his question. Jay could practically see the Ice Ninja's gears turning as he tried to figure out what was going on.

"Why is what here?" Wu feigned innocence, realizing what was going on and desperately hoping he was wrong.

"That," Crow sputtered, making a vague gesture towards Zane, who judging by the new devastation in his eyes, was realizing what was happening as well.

"Zane?" Jay stepped forward. "He's part of the crew, and if you think he's going anywhere, then-"

"Zane, leave."

The words felt like fire on Wu's tongue, burning the android alive. The elder made a note to pull his pupil aside after for a heart to heart, seeing as he struggled to retain his composure. Zane's voice trembled slightly as he spoke, moving into a slight bow.

"Yes, Sensei."

And with that, he was gone. Silently and swiftly. Jay automatically moved towards where Zane had left, going to comfort his brother, but Sensei shook his head minutely, eyes promising an explanation later. The Lightning Ninja tried to quiet the roaring guilt in his gut as Dr. Crow began to detail his security system, but the teen's mind was anywhere but blueprints.

* * *

Zane felt numb as he walked out the door. He still hadn't quite registered what had happened, and found himself out on the deck staring at the sky.

Had Sensei just admitted to him being an _it_?

If he were human, the sensation he felt in his throat would have certainly been bile. Was he an it? Hadn't Sensei been the first to sit him down and ensure that he knew that the team thought of him as anything but just a robot?

Zane felt his eyes burn, but couldn't bring himself to cry as the sun bored its way into his retinas, making his optical cameras disorient and blur. He was too confused to decipher any emotions that began to swell like a tidal wave, merely slinking back against the wall of the Bounty and sliding to a seat, folding his hands in his lap as he tried to think about anything but the events that had just occurred.

An hour had passed.

Maybe less, more? A few minutes, a few hours, a few days?

Doesn't matter.

Zane was too bewildered to count when a rough arm grabbed him, shocking him out of his meditative state and shoving him against the wooden paneling.

Oh, right, Dr. Crow.

"You see, Wu," The engineer began, and Zane was about to shove back against the invasive touch when a rough hand was pushed under his shirt, prying open his chest panel with forceful fingers and hovering over some switches. "There's some really interesting things I've heard about in here, just watch."

Zane was about to vocally protest, snapping out of his daze, but he felt a jolt of electricity surge through his gut before his vision cut out, and he was left blinking rapidly, stunned into inaction. Another switch flipped, and his hearing muted. A third hand touched him, and he recognized the wrinkled skin of his mentor on the side of his neck, looking to provide grounding for the android as fingers ghosted over more switches, unsure if his whimpers were audible or just in his head.

More force was applied, and the warm hand on his neck had migrated to holding down his other arm after his shirt was practically torn from his body to give his attackers more access. He couldn't find the fight in him to resist against his teacher, and so he resigned himself to being a temporary plaything for the engineer, wires being moved around to give him a better view while Zane shuddered. This went on for an indefinite amount of time, just as he thought the torture was over, it picked up again full force.

His subtle noises of discomfort must have been too annoying, as he was pushed to the ground, and he felt his head crash against the deck as he crumpled.

Suddenly, everything stopped. He had no idea what was happening, error messages popping up like weeds in his black vision, warning him of malfunctioning systems and high stress levels. He curled up once more, tucking his head into his knees to shield himself from anymore possible attacks, hands securing the ball he was in.

The next hand to touch him was incredible gentle, skin youthful and smooth as it gingerly nudged his knees apart and softly cracked open his chest panel, the first switch touched his vision. When he saw Nya kneeling in front of him, tears pricking the corners of her eyes, he felt himself do the same. Her hand dipped downwards once more, and the sounds of muted argument inside the ship flooded his ears.

"NnnnYyyaAAa," He attempted desperately, but found his voice to be glitchy and uneven, _robotic_ even.

"Here, I'll get that for you," She smiled sadly, and reached up to his open neck port, adjusting a few wires that had been knocked out of place when he fell. "Try that?"

"Nya," He gasped, vocals still slightly metallic but significantly improved. "Wh- What just happened?"

"You were just pinned down and dug around in without your consent," She replied bitterly, not missing the way his arms wrapped around his chest once his panel was shut. "You wanna go inside, or...?"

He shook his head, feeling tears leak out of his eyes, shoulders shaking as she sunk down next to him, wrapping an arm around his thin frame as he cried.

* * *

When the rest of the Bounty saw Zane again, he was making dinner.

"Hey Frosty," Cole greeted softly, as Nya had spread the word to the crew about what had happened hours earlier. "Whatcha making?"

"Miso soup. Request of Dr. Crow," The android droned, and the Earth Ninja could've sworn there were bags under his eyes.

"Request, or command?"

Zane didn't answer, which told Cole all he needed to know.

"Look, buddy, this guy is gone after dinner," The Earth Ninja rested an easy arm around his friend, who looked up at him as a cue to continue. "You wanna watch a movie or something? Y'know, popcorn, soda, the whole nine yards."

"Whatever you all want," Zane smiled pleasantly, and Cole scowled.

"Nuh-Uh. I'm not letting you pull that. Would a movie night be good for you?" He asked again, emphasizing the personal aspect, and Zane bit back a sigh.

"Yes, it does sound enjoyable. Thank you, Cole."

Just then, everyone's favorite inventor decided to walk in, and the Earth Ninja startled, yanking his arm back from his friend.

"Almost done?" He said coldly, and Zane nodded, not risking speaking. "Good."

He turned to Cole, eyes softer when facing a human.

"Only thing you keep him around for right?" He barked a laugh, and Cole gave him a strained smile in response. "I've heard about this thing's cooking. Better live up to the hype, if you know what I mean."

Just like that, he was gone, and Cole was back on the Ice Ninja, this time wrapping both arms around the android from behind with a sigh into his hair.

"I promise you Zane, we love you for you, not for your cooking or any bullshit like that," Cole laughed humorlessly, but Zane didn't respond. "God, we're all going to need to sit down and have a long talk about your self-esteem, eh?"

Zane blinked up at him before letting his head fall back onto Cole's chest with a _thunk_, breathing heavier.

"I'm so sorry, Zane. Just... let's get through dinner and go from there, ok?"

A call from outside the room startled them both.

"Hey Cole, you have a minute?" Kai yelled from what sounded like the game room, and Cole gave the Ice Ninja one last squeeze before letting go.

"Yeah, yeah, I'm coming."

As if like a recurring pattern, Zane was alone once more.

* * *

When dinner arrived, Zane didn't eat. He set the pot down on the table with bowls previously set, and stood idly behind Dr. Crow as the crew ate. There was no empty chair. The android stared off into the distance, scanning the room and taking note of the drinks, the amount of soup left, lost in the data and the numbers, entranced by the endless stream of information and-

His train of thought was interrupted by a slap to his face.

"I _said _to go and get us some more water, do I need to tell you again, or should I dial your audio sensitivity up to one hundred and see how you function then?"

Zane was in shock. He wanted to do so much, to release the pent up anger he felt at the injustice of being called an it, but he only nodded, purposefully ignoring the faces of his team, who he was sure were all just as in awe as he was at the supposedly grown man's behavior. However, he turned to outside instead of the kitchen, and climbed up to the crow's nest, curling into ball much like the one he had been in hours before, the harsh wind travelling over the wooden sides to nip at his exposed hands.

It was almost an hour later when he heard his name being called.

"Zane!"

It was Kai, but the android didn't feel particularly inclined to answer.

"Are you out here?"

Oh, so they didn't know where he was. Perfect for feigning sleep as an excuse to avoid having to deal with that _man_, the one he had been so open to meeting and talking with. He entertained the thought of starting a robot uprising briefly before Kai's next vocalization stopped him.

"He's gone, it's just us."

Now there was a promising idea. Zane sat up slightly, joints complaining.

"Up here," He shouted weakly, barely audible over the wind, but it was heard by the Fire Ninja. The wooden cup shook as Kai ascended the ladder, eventually poking his head up into the nest.

"Hey," He greeted, and Zane gave a small wave. "How're you feeling?"

"Awful," The android admitted, a weak smile plastered on his lips as Kai joined him, shivering.

"Man, how are you not cold? It's freezing up here."

Nothing more was said for a while as the two sat side by side, Kai's teeth faintly chattering every now and again.

"So... Cole's picked out a good movie. I've heard of it, sounds funny," The Fire Ninja attempted, but Zane shrugged. "Even if we don't watch a movie, just come down with us. And, uh, I think Sensei's looking to talk to you."

So Zane followed him down. The team tackled him, all squeezing the life out of the robot who wanted nothing more than to forget this ever happened. When Wu approached him, waving the rest of the crew off to the game room to get comfortable, Zane was understandably nervous.

"I'm so sorry," Wu began, bringing a hand up to rest on Zane's cheek, the ninja flinching as he remembered the attack earlier. "We needed to make a deal with him so desperately, he offered us so much money for our protection..."

Zane just looked away, rocking slightly on his heels.

"It doesn't excuse anything I helped him with today, or anything he did to you," Wu contended bitterly, remembering the look on Zane's face as he was slapped, the hurt in his eyes after he was called an it for the first time that day. "I just hope you find it in your heart to forgive me and begin to heal yourself."

Part of him was relieved when Zane hugged him, but the other knew that was just the reaction get him to stop feeling guilty. Zane always hated feeling like a burden.

And as Sensei passed by his room later that night to hear muffled sobs from the Ice Ninja, he knew that the poor boy would never be the same again.


End file.
